Race track permit must be revised

Valley Speedway in Grain Valley will remain open through the end of the season, and the city has asked the owner to sit down and work out a new permit to operate next year.

In a nearly six-hour meeting Thursday night, including a four-hour hearing, the Board of Aldermen voted unanimously to revoke the speedway’s conditional-use permit, having found the operator to have violated of the permit. The board also voted unanimously to have city staff sit down with the owner, Dennis Shrout, to revise the permit or come up with a new one.

The renovation takes effect Oct. 1, meaning the race track can finish its current season. Races are held on Saturday nights and other nights from time to time. Shrout said the speedway draws 500 to 1,500 fans a night, making a big economic impact for the city.

“The city had said all along we do not want to close the track,” City Administrator Alexa Barton said today, adding that she’d like to see talks on a new permit get started right away.